Word Origin & History

coach 1550s, "large kind of carriage," from M.Fr. coche, from Ger. kotsche, from Hung. kocsi (szekér) "(carriage) of Kocs," village where it was first made. In Hungary, the thing and the name for it date from 15c., and forms are found in most European languages. Applied to railway cars 1866, Amer.Eng. Sense of "economy or tourist class" is from 1949. Meaning "instructor/trainer" is c.1830 Oxford University slang for a tutor who "carries" a student through an exam; athletic sense is 1861. Related: Coached; coaching.